Park Avenue Securities LLC Has $415,000 Stock Position in Avista Co. (NYSE:AVA)

Park Avenue Securities LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Avista Co. (NYSE:AVA) by 5.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,855 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 655 shares during the quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC’s holdings in Avista were worth $415,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. UBS Group AG boosted its holdings in shares of Avista by 38.4% during the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 89,008 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,881,000 after purchasing an additional 24,682 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Avista by 83.7% during the 3rd quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 101,634 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,290,000 after acquiring an additional 46,298 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its stake in shares of Avista by 13.2% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,820,958 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $58,944,000 after acquiring an additional 212,343 shares during the last quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Avista during the third quarter worth $377,000. Finally, Evergreen Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Avista during the third quarter valued at $6,643,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.24% of the company’s stock.

Avista Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AVA opened at $34.61 on Friday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $36.11 and its 200-day simple moving average is $34.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 0.97. Avista Co. has a 52 week low of $30.53 and a 52 week high of $40.13. The firm has a market cap of $2.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.36 and a beta of 0.49.

Avista (NYSE:AVA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.00 by ($0.09). Avista had a net margin of 9.96% and a return on equity of 7.65%. The company had revenue of $594.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $469.34 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.73 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 29.3% on a year-over-year basis.

Avista Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 14th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 23rd were issued a dividend of $0.475 per share. This represents a $1.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 22nd. Avista’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 78.84%.

Insider Activity

In other Avista news, SVP Bryan Alden Cox sold 1,716 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.70, for a total value of $61,261.20. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 7,196 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $256,897.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, CEO Jason R. Thackston sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.98, for a total transaction of $92,450.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 32,506 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,202,071.88. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Bryan Alden Cox sold 1,716 shares of Avista stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.70, for a total value of $61,261.20. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 7,196 shares in the company, valued at $256,897.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 5,916 shares of company stock valued at $215,268. 0.96% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on AVA shares. StockNews.com raised Avista from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, May 10th. Mizuho upgraded shares of Avista from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $32.00 to $36.00 in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $35.00.

Avista Company Profile

Avista Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an electric and natural gas utility company. It operates in two segments, Avista Utilities and AEL&P. The Avista Utilities segment provides electric distribution and transmission, and natural gas distribution services in parts of eastern Washington and northern Idaho; and natural gas distribution services in parts of northeastern and southwestern Oregon, as well as generates electricity in Washington, Idaho, Oregon, and Montana.